Made by one person, for writing things down.
Scratchpad is the notes app I built so a great idea never gets lost, whether it started as a note, a PDF, a photo, or a voice memo.
Why it exists
I've written things down for as long as I've been building software, which is about twenty years now. Decisions, failed attempts, customer feedback, and ideas that showed up at the wrong time all went into my notes.
I wrote about the habit in Documenting the Mess, on my own blog.
After enough years of it, the habit wasn't the hard part anymore. Finding things was. The quote I needed was inside a PDF, the error was in a screenshot, and the idea was in a voice memo I'd never play back.
So I built the notes app I wanted. It started as a tool for me alone, then my family used it, then friends, and now it's open to anyone.
I wanted one that reads everything you put in it, keeps every version, and turns your voice into text you can search.
How it works behind the scenes.
Paid for by subscriptions
There are no investors to answer to and no advertising. The people who use Scratchpad pay for it, and that is the whole business.
Your notes stay yours
Nothing about you is sold, and your notes are never used to train AI models. Why it works this way has the details, and the privacy policy has them in full.
Its own servers
Scratchpad runs on servers I manage myself. Voice memos are transcribed on those same servers, so your audio isn't sent to another company.
Backed up every night
Every note and file is backed up every night, and the backups are kept apart from the servers that run Scratchpad.
Easy to leave
Export a note, a folder, or everything at once as Markdown you can open anywhere. An app that's easy to leave has to be worth staying in.
A person answers
Questions, bugs, and ideas reach me directly at hello@scratchpad.sh. There is no support queue in between.
Your next great idea needs somewhere to land.
Get startedUS$12 a month, or US$8 with your own AI key. 30-day money-back guarantee.